Systems and methods for location identification and tracking using a camera

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for location identification and tracking of a person, object and/or vehicle. The methods involve: obtaining, by a computing system, a video of a surrounding environment which was captured by a portable camera coupled to the person, object or vehicle; comparing, by the computing system, first images of the video to pre-stored second images to identify geographic locations where the first images were captured by the portable camera; analyzing, by the computing system, the identified geographic locations to verify that the person, object or vehicle is (1) traveling along a correct path, (2) traveling towards a facility for which the person, object or vehicle has authorization to enter, or (3) traveling towards a zone or secured area internal or external to the facility for which the person, object or vehicle has authorization to enter; and transmitting a notification from the computing system indicating the results of the analyzing.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/204,138 filed on Aug. 12, 2015. The contents of thisProvisional Patent Application are hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This document relates generally to systems and methods for locationidentification and tracking. More particularly, this document relates tosystems and methods for location identification and tracking using acamera.

BACKGROUND

There are numerous systems used for location tracking. These systemsinclude Global Positioning Systems (“GPSs”), Radio Frequency (“RF”)based indoor positioning systems, fixed camera systems, and mobilecamera systems. The GPSs require an external system with additionalrequirements that cannot always be met (e.g., visibility of satellites).GPSs do not work indoors, do not provide direction, and are limited tooutside locations under specific circumstances. The RF based indoorpositioning systems require installed infrastructure with specificvendor technology. The fixed camera systems require an extensive systemof installed infrastructure with specific vendor technology. The fixedcamera systems have limited ability to indicate an individual's facingdirection and path. The mobile camera systems simply record the camera'sperspective and do not provide locational information.

The tracking of objects through a space is a common need in areas (suchas security, traffic management and advertising) for the purposes ofpath verification, path optimization, security monitoring, etc. Objecttracking has also traditionally been solved using static video camerasor attached video cameras.

Human security personnel routinely monitor facilities by walking,driving or otherwise monitoring a patrol route. However, verification ofthe performance of those duties requires additional managementpersonnel, easily circumvented auxiliary verification measures, orcomplex techniques to adequately certify the execution of securitymonitoring duties.

Even in the instances where the path can be verified, the procedure andenvironment cannot. The individual's perspective is lost using currentmethods, which fail to provide details about what was done, where it wasdone, and how it was done.

Other techniques (such as GPS) require external systems with additionalsystem requirements that cannot be met (e.g., visibility of satellites).Although such technologies may record a path, they cannot provide theperspective of the individual. Recorded video surveillance at a locationand recorded perspective video from a body-mounted camera requirepersonnel to view and potentially detect irregularities in procedure orenvironment, but cannot automatically demonstrate that correctprocedures were followed nor immediately detect variations in procedureor environment.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure concerns implementing systems and methods forlocation identification and tracking of a person, object and/or vehicle.The methods comprise: obtaining, by a computing system, a video of asurrounding environment which was captured by a portable camera disposedon, coupled to and/or attached to the person, object or vehicle;comparing, by the computing system, first images of the video topre-stored second images to identify geographic locations where thefirst images were captured by the portable camera; analyzing, by thecomputing system, the identified geographic locations to verify that theperson, object or vehicle is (1) traveling along a correct path, (2)traveling towards a facility for which the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter, (3) traveling towards a zone or secured areainternal or external to the facility for which the person, object orvehicle has authorization to enter, or (4) located within or inproximity to the facility, zone or secured area for which the person,object or vehicle has authorization to enter; and transmitting anotification from the computing system indicating the results of theanalyzing. The computing system may comprise at least one of theportable camera and a computing device remote from the portable camera.The computing system may also analyze the determined geographic locationto additionally or alternatively determine: if the correct path is beingtraveled or was followed; and/or if the correct path is being traveledor was followed in a prescribed timely manner.

In some scenarios, the person, object or vehicle is allowed to enter thefacility, zone or secured area when it is verified that the person,object or vehicle has authorization to enter the same. For example, alock may be commanded to unlock so as to allow entry into the facility,zone or secured area. A unique identifier for the portable camera may beused as an electronic key for unlocking the lock. Security personnel mayalso be notified that the person, object or vehicle is authorized toenter the facility, zone or secured area.

Security personnel may additionally or alternatively be notified when itis not verified that the person, object or vehicle has authorization toenter the facility, zone or secured area. Measures may be taken toprevent the person, object or vehicle from entering the facility, zoneor secured area when it is not verified that the person, object orvehicle has authorization to enter the same. The measures can compriselocking a lock. The unique identifier of the portable camera may be usedas an electronic key for locking the lock. The unique identifier of theportable camera may also be used to: determine an access or clearancelevel of the person, object or vehicle; facilitate authentication of theperson, object or vehicle on which the portable camera is disposed;and/or facilitate keyless access control into or out of the facility orsecured area.

In those or other scenarios, the identified geographic locations areused to generate a path of travel of the person, object or vehiclethrough the surrounding environment. Global Positioning System (“GPS”)data, inertial navigation data, beacon data and/or sensor data may beused in conjunction with the video to identify the geographic locations,to verify that the identified geographic locations are correct, todetect a path of travel, or to verify that the path of travel iscorrect. Additionally or alternatively, the portable camera may be usedto capture an image of a mirror reflection of the person, object orvehicle to facilitate access control.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present solution will be described with reference to the followingdrawing figures, in which like numerals represent like items throughoutthe figures.

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of an exemplary system.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of an exemplary method for locating and/ortracking a person, object or vehicle.

FIG. 3 provides an illustration of an exemplary computing device thatcan be used to implement the present solution.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It will be readily understood that the components of the presentsolution as generally described herein and illustrated in the appendedfigures could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of differentconfigurations. Thus, the following more detailed description of thepresent solution, as represented in the figures, is not intended tolimit the scope of the present disclosure, but is merely representativeof various implementations of the present solution. While the variousaspects of the present solution are presented in drawings, the drawingsare not necessarily drawn to scale unless specifically indicated.

The present solution may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from its spirit or essential characteristics. The describedembodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrativeand not restrictive. The scope of the present solution is, therefore,indicated by the appended claims rather than by this detaileddescription. All changes which come within the meaning and range ofequivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

Reference throughout this specification to features, advantages, orsimilar language does not imply that all of the features and advantagesthat may be realized with the present solution should be or are in anysingle embodiment of the present solution. Rather, language referring tothe features and advantages is understood to mean that a specificfeature, advantage, or characteristic described in connection with anembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the presentsolution. Thus, discussions of the features and advantages, and similarlanguage, throughout the specification may, but do not necessarily,refer to the same embodiment.

Furthermore, the described features, advantages and characteristics ofthe present solution may be combined in any suitable manner in one ormore embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, inlight of the description herein, that the present solution can bepracticed without one or more of the specific features or advantages ofa particular embodiment. In other instances, additional features andadvantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not bepresent in all embodiments of the present solution.

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment”, “anembodiment”, or similar language means that a particular feature,structure, or characteristic described in connection with the indicatedembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the presentsolution. Thus, the phrases “in one embodiment”, “in an embodiment”, andsimilar language throughout this specification may, but do notnecessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.

As used in this document, the singular form “a”, “an”, and “the” includeplural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Unlessdefined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein havethe same meanings as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in theart. As used in this document, the term “comprising” means “including,but not limited to”.

The present disclosure concerns implementing systems and methods forlocation identification and tracking using a camera and/or otherenvironment sensing/recording devices (e.g., Light Detection And Ranging(“LIDAR”) devices, plenoptic cameras, and/or structured light sensors).Each of the listed devices are well known in the art, and therefore willnot be described in detail herein. Any known or to be known cameraand/or environment sensing/recording device can be used herein withoutlimitation. The systems and methods can be employed in variousapplications. For example, the systems and methods can be used for (1)access control into buildings/areas based on a person's securityclearance level, (2) determining whether an employee performed his(her)required tasks (e.g., completed an assignment, went to the correctplace(s), followed correct procedures, travelled the correct paththrough a facility, etc.), and/or (3) determining where a person iscurrently located within a facility. Data captured by the camera and/orenvironment sensing/recording device (e.g., video and/or images capturedby the camera) can be used for verification, legal issue resolution,and/or future security review to determine who was present within thebuilding/area at any given time.

Notably, the present solution is discussed herein primarily in relationto camera and/or video capture scenarios for ease of explanation. Thepresent solution is not limited in this regard as evident from theimmediately preceding two (2) paragraphs.

As known in the art, video capture is the process of converting ananalog video signal (such as that produced by a camera) to digitalvideo. The resulting digital data are computer files referred to hereinas a digital video stream, a video stream, a captured video, and/or avideo. The video may be stored in a compressed or uncompressed format.Methods for data compression are well known in the art. Any known or tobe known data compression technique can be used herein withoutlimitation.

The methods generally involve: recording images by the camera to createvisual, locational fingerprints; identifying subsequent visits to knownlocations using images captured by the camera and a plurality of knownlocation images which were pre-stored in a data store; analyzingdifferences from expected images; verifying paths using the visual,locational fingerprints and the known location images; identifyingwaypoints using the visual, locational fingerprints; logging positionwith a coordinate system; providing location and direction; optionallyaugmenting the position with the addition of GPS data, inertialnavigation data, beacon information, or other sensor data (e.g., beambreak sensor data); optionally augmenting tracking using sensor data;and/or providing additional spatial information using a threedimensional (“3D”) camera.

The 3D camera can comprise a portable standard camera mounted on anymobile object, person or vehicle. The camera is operative to work in anyenvironment and to provide facing direction. The visual, locationalfingerprints can be previously stored, auto-learned or result from postprocessing of a route. Real-time processing could be added to provideimmediate feedback for a self-contained system.

Notably, the camera based technique described herein does not requiresignificant data storage, additional infrastructure for operability, orexternal systems for operability. By adding a 3D camera, images can bedigitally rotated and distances can be determined between a person andan object of interest. The camera also allows automated detection ofmilestones or achievement of waypoints for fulfillment of procedures.

The camera based technique(s) described herein overcome(s) certainlimitations of conventional techniques by providing location tracking,environment monitoring, individual perspective, and automaticverification of route and procedures. Additionally, the camera basedtechnique(s) described herein can be used to provide access control,security zone control, visual evidence of security and individualinvolvement, detection of unexpected or unauthorized items in anenvironment, and identity verification. Furthermore, the camera basedtechnique(s) described herein provide(s) solutions that areself-contained, use standard equipment, and do not require existinginfrastructure.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is provided an exemplary system 100configured for location identification and tracking of persons, objectand/or vehicles using a portable camera 108. The portable camera 108 isattached to a person 106 (or alternatively to an object or vehicle).Portable cameras are well known in the art, and therefore will not bedescribed herein. The portable camera 108 can comprise any known or tobe known camera.

In some scenarios, the portable camera 108 is a 3D camera capable ofgenerating 3D measurements of a space. For example, the portable camera108 is an LG 360 CAM spherical camera having part number LGR105.AUSTATSavailable from LG Electronics Inc. of South Korea, a Theta S modelcamera available from Ricoh Company, Ltd. of Japan, or a GoPro actioncamera available from GoPro, Inc. of San Mateo, Calif. The 3Dmeasurements can be used to verify a person's location and/or positionwithin a space. The present solution is not limited to the particularsof these scenarios. As noted above, the portable device 108 canadditionally or alternatively comprises a LIDAR device, a structuredlight system or other wide-field camera system.

In those or other scenarios, the portable camera 108 may have additionalcircuitry added thereto as an accessory 120. The additional circuitrycan include, but is not limited to, a GPS circuit, an inertialnavigation circuit, a beacon reader circuit, a processing unit and/or adata store. Each of the listed electronic circuits/devices is well knownin the art, and therefore will not be described herein. Any known or tobe known GPS circuit, an inertial navigation circuit, a beacon readercircuit, a processing unit and/or a data store can be used hereinwithout limitation. The accessory 120 can be coupled to the portablecamera via any suitable coupling means, such as an adhesive ormechanical coupler (e.g., screws, clamps, Velcro, straps, etc.).

During operation, the portable camera 108 captures video of asurrounding environment as the person 106 travels to, from and/orthrough facilities 102, 104. As should be understood, the capturing isachieved (in some scenarios) by converting analog video signalsgenerated by the camera into a digital format. The captured video may beprocessed and/or stored by the portable camera 108. Additionally oralternatively, the video is communicated from the portable camera 108 toa remote computing system 112 via a wireless communications link 114 forprocessing thereat. As should be understood, the video data (which maybe in an analog or digital form) is converted or transformed into aRadio Frequency (RF″) form for transmission over the wirelesscommunications link 114. The computing system 112 comprises at least onecomputing device and/or at least one data store (e.g., internal memory(e.g., a RAM, ROM, etc.) and/or external memory (e.g., a database)). Anexemplary architecture for the computing system 112 is described belowin relation to FIG. 3.

The present solution is not limited to wireless communicationscapabilities. The video may alternatively be communicated to the remotecomputing system 112 via a wired connection. For example, a plurality ofkiosks is disposed at a facility. The camera downloads the video when itis inserted into a kiosk.

In all cases, the processing can involve: comparing video image contentwith pre-stored image content to identify locations internal to orexternal to the facilities 102, 104 (e.g., via pattern recognition ordetection of known targets (symbols, signs, markers, statues, trees,doorways, or other landmarks, object or items) strategically placedinternal/external to facilities 102, 104); using results of thecomparison operations to determine at least one geographic location atwhich the image(s) was(were) captured and/or a path of travel for theperson 108; and analyzing the identified geographic locations and/ordetermined path of travel to verify that the person 108 is travelingalong a correct path, traveling towards a facility 102 for which theperson has authorization to enter, traveling towards a zone 1-3 within afacility for which the person has authorization to enter, travelingtowards a secured area 110 for which the person has authorization toenter, and/or is in or is about to enter a facility, secured area and/orzone for which the person has authorization to enter.

In some scenarios, the correct path is selected from a plurality ofpre-defined paths stored in a data store. Alternatively or additionally,the correct path is dynamically generated or determined during operationof system 100. The correct path can be selected and/or dynamicallygenerated/determined based on a current determined path of travel of theperson, a predicted facility/secured area/zone to which the person istraveling, historical paths of travel associated with the person, asecurity/access level of the person, tasks assigned to the person, taskspreviously performed by the person, tasks being performed by the person,and/or time of day/week/month/year. A determination as to whether or notthe person is traveling along the correct path is made based on resultsof a comparison of the correct path of travel to the path of traveldetermined for the person based on the video data captured by the camera108.

Notably, the video image content comparison can involve a percentagematching and/or a probability percentage that the processor knowscorrectly where the camera 108 is in 3D space. The percentage and/orprobability percentage are selected based on a particular application,and may be set in a system as threshold values. For example, a match isdetermined to exist if greater than fifty percent (50%) of a videoimage's content (within the entire image or a select portion of theimage) is the same as a pre-stored image's content (within the entireimage or a select portion of the image). Once the amount of similarimage content is determined, it is compared to a threshold value offifty (50) to determine if a match does indeed exist between the two (2)images. A match is determined to exist when the amount of similar imagecontent exceeds fifty (50). A match does not exist when the amount ofsimilar image content is equal to or less than fifty (50).

In some scenarios, the comparison operations involve comparing images ofthe video to pre-stored images to identify matches. For example, as aresult of the comparison operations, a percentage of a first videoimage's content is determined to match a first pre-stored image'scontent. Location information is stored in a data store so as to beassociated with the first pre-stored image. The location informationspecifies a known location of a landmark shown in the first pre-storedimage. This known location is obtained and used for the camera'slocation at the time the first video image was captured thereby. Thepresent solution is not limited to the particulars of this example.Other techniques for determined camera locations based on results ofimage processing can be used herein. Such other techniques can involveidentifying specific visual elements and/or encoded information embeddedwithin an image or series of images. Additionally, multiple iterationsof this may be performed for matching image sets. Accordingly, aplurality of camera locations may be determined which can be analyzedand/or mapped to define a path of travel.

Based on results of the analysis, various measures can be taken foraccess control purposes. For example, if (a) the results indicate thatthe person 106 is traveling towards a particular facility 102, 104, zone1, 2, 3, or secured area 110 b and (b) the person 106 has theappropriate access/clearance level to enter the same, then accesscontrol operations are performed for allowing the person to enter thesame. In some scenarios, the person's access/clearance level isdetermined by accessing a data store. A unique identifier assigned tothe person (e.g., the camera's unique identifier or other sequence ofsymbols) is stored in the data store so as to be associated with a listof locations for which the person has the appropriate clearance/accesslevel to enter. The access control operations can involve commanding adoor lock of an access point 118 to unlock (thereby eliminating the needfor a Common Access Card (“CAC”) card) or notifying a security guardthat the person 106 is authorized to access the facility, zone orsecured area. The command and/or notification can be generated by andsent from the portable camera 108 and/or the computing system 112 to anelectronic device 122 located at the access point 118 or in the securityguards possession. Any known or to be known wired or wirelesscommunication technique can be used without limitation for the statedpurpose.

In contrast, if the results indicate that the person does not have theappropriate access/clearance level to enter the particular facility 102,104, zone 1, 2, 3, or secured area 110 b indicated by the determinedpath of travel, then a notification is provided to the person 106 (viacamera 108, accessory 122 or other communication device (e.g., a mobilephone 124)) and/or to security personnel (e.g., via a computing deviceor communication device (e.g., a mobile phone)) indicating that theperson 106 is attempting to access a facility, area and/or zone forwhich the person does not have the appropriate access/clearance level toenter. After which, the security personnel can take measures to preventthe person from entering a facility, zone and/or secured area for which(s)he does not have permission to access.

In some scenarios, the portable camera 108 has a unique identifierassociated therewith. The unique identifier may be used (as mentionedabove) to facilitate the identification of the person for which thevideo is being captured. Once the person has been identified, his(her)access/clearance level can be retrieved from a data store local to theportable camera 108 or remote from the portable camera 108. The requiredaccess/clearance level for the facilities 102, 104, zones 1-3, andsecured area 110 can also be stored in the data store local to thecamera 108 or remote from the camera (such as in the computing system112). In this case, the access/clearance level retrieved for the personis compared to the required access/clearance level for a given facility,zone or secured area.

The unique identifier also facilitates authentication of the person inpossession of the camera so as to prevent others from using that cameraassigned to that person. Techniques for authenticating a person'sidentity are well known in the art. Any known or to be knownauthentication technique can be employed herein without limitation.

The unique identifier can further be used to facilitate keyless accesscontrol into a facility, secured area and/or zone. In this case, thecamera's unique identifier is used at access or entry points (e.g.,doors) 118 to allow authentication and access control. For example, thecamera's unique identifier is used as the person's unique identifier forauthentication purposes. In this case, the camera's unique identifier iscompared to a plurality of stored identifiers to determine if a matchexists. Alternatively or additionally, the camera's unique identifier isused as an electronic key for access control purposes such as unlockinga lock 132. The electronic key may be communicated from the camera 108or other communication device 124 in the person's possession to the lock132 via Radio Frequency Identification (“RFID”) technology, Bluetoothtechnology or other Short Range Communication (“SRC”) technology.

In those or other scenarios, GPS data, inertial navigation data, beacondata and/or other sensor data (e.g., accelerometer data, gyroscope data,etc.) is used in conjunction with the video data to detect the person'spath of travel. The listed types of data are well known in the art, andtherefore are not described in detail herein. Techniques for generatingand/or acquiring such data are also well known in the art. Any known orto be known technique for generating and/or acquiring such data can beused herein without limitation.

In some scenarios, the GPS data, inertial navigation data, beacon dataand/or other sensor data can be used to interpolate positions betweenknown visual waypoints (e.g., to determine that the person turned leftor right), i.e., to determine a position between two known fixedreference points in physical space (e.g., two landmarks). Methods forinterpolating positions using waypoints are well known in the art. Anyknown or to be known interpolation methods can be used herein withoutlimitation.

The GPS data, inertial navigation data, beacon data and/or other sensordata may alternatively or additionally be used to verify that theresults of a video data analysis are correct, i.e., that the person'sposition determined using the video data is correct. This verificationcan generally involve comparing location/position results of the videoanalysis with locations/positions specified by the GPS data, inertialnavigation data, beacon data and/or other sensor data generate oracquired at the same time as the respective video image. The beacon datacan be obtained via wireless communications between the camera 108 andbeacons 130 (which are strategically placed in system 100 at indoorand/or outdoor locations). Beacons are well known in the art, andtherefore will not be described herein. Any known or to be known beaconcan be employed herein without limitation. For example, the beaconsinclude iBeacons® available from Apple Inc. of Cupertino, Calif.

In yet other scenarios, facial recognition can be used at access points(e.g., doors) 118 to verify that the person possessing the camera 108 isthe correct person. The facial recognition is achieved using mirrors 116placed at the access points 118 so that the camera 108 can take picturesof the person's reflection shown in the mirrors. Facial recognitiontechniques are well known in the art, and therefore will not bedescribed herein. Any known or to be known facial recognition techniquecan be used herein without limitation. The facial recognition techniquecan be implemented by camera 108 and/or computing system 112.

The present solution may be used in scenarios in which the person'sactivities are to be kept secret or confidential. Accordingly,cryptography may be employed to protect information communicated withinsystem 100. For example, information communicated between the camera 108and the computing system 112 may be encrypted in accordance with achaotic, random or pseudo-random number sequence generation algorithm.Such cryptographic algorithms are well known in the art, and will not bedescribed herein. Any known or to be known cryptographic algorithm canbe used herein without limitation. In all scenarios, the seed value ofthe algorithm can include, but is not limited to, the camera's uniqueidentifier, the person's unique identifier, a unique identifier of agiven location (e.g., a facility, secured area or zone the person wasin, is currently in, or is traveling towards), a unique identifier of acorrect path, and/or a unique identifier of a task (or mission) thatwas, is being or is to be performed by the person. Notably, all or aportion of the data processing that is performed by system 100 can bedone using plaintext data and/or encrypted data depending on aparticular application.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is provided a flow diagram of anexemplary method 200 for location identification and tracking ofpersons, object and/or vehicles. Method 200 begins with step 202 andcontinues with step 204 where a portable camera (e.g., portable camera108 of FIG. 1) is disposed on a person (e.g., person 106 of FIG. 1),object or vehicle.

A unique identifier of the portable camera is used in step 206 tofacilitate authentication of the person, object or vehicle on which thecamera is disposed. The unique identifier can include, but is notlimited to, a sequence of numbers, a sequence of letters, a sequence ofletters and numbers, and/or a sequence of other symbols. The uniqueidentifier can be compared to a plurality of unique identifiers storedin a data store for authentication purposes. For example, the person'sauthentication is at least partially obtained if the unique identifieracquired from the camera matches a unique identifier stored in the datastore.

In some scenarios, information other than or in addition to the camera'sunique identifier is used for authentication purposes in step 206. Thisinformation can include, but is limited to, a user name and/or passwordassociated with the person.

Thereafter in step 208, the portable camera performs operations torecord video of a surrounding environment. The video comprises aplurality of video images. The video images are compared to pre-storedimages in step 210 (a) to detect a path of travel of the person, objector vehicle through the surrounding environment and/or (b) to identify atleast one geographic location at which the image(s) was(were) captured.Image processing is well known in the art. Any known or to be knownimage processing technique can be used herein without limitation.

In some scenarios, the image processing generally involves: comparing acaptured image with pre-stored images to identify which one of thepre-stored images contains some or all of the first captured image'scontent; and obtaining location information stored in a data store so asto be associated with the identified pre-stored image. These imageprocessing steps are iteratively or simultaneously performed for all orsome of the captured images. Thereafter, the location information may beused to define a path of travel for the person, object or vehicle. Oncethe path of travel is defined, the path may be plotted on amulti-dimensional map. The multi-dimensional map may be displayed torelevant persons (e.g., security guards). The path of travel may also bestored for later use as historical travel information for the person,object or person.

The path of travel and/or identified geographic location(s) is(are)analyzed in step 212 to verify that the person, object or vehicle is (1)traveling along a correct path, (2) traveling towards a facility forwhich the person, object or vehicle has authorization to enter, and/or(3) traveling towards a zone or secured area internal or external to thefacility for which the person, object or vehicle has authorization toenter, and/or (4) is located within or in proximity to a facility,secured area or zone for which the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter. The path of travel and/or identified geographiclocation(s) additionally or alternatively be analyzed to determine: ifthe correct path is being traveled or was followed; and/or if thecorrect path is being traveled or was followed in a prescribed timelymanner.

The analysis of step 212 can involve: using a unique identifier of theportable camera to determine an access or clearance level of the person,object or vehicle; and/or using at least one of GPS data, inertialnavigation data, beacon data and sensor data in conjunction with thevideo to verify that the identified geographic location(s) and/or pathof travel is(are) correct. In some scenarios, items (1), (2) and/or (3)is(are) verified by (A) comparing the identified geographic location(s)to pre-defined geographic location(s) stored in a data store and/or (B)comparing the detected path of travel to at least one pre-defined pathof travel stored in the data store. Additionally or alternatively, adestination of the person/vehicle/object is predicted based on theidentified geographic location(s), detected path of travel, thedirection of travel, and/or historical travel information associatedwith the person/vehicle/object. The predicted destination is thencompared to a plurality of destinations stored in a data store.

As should be readily understood, GPS data specifies a position of thecamera at a specified time as determined by a global navigationsatellite. Inertial navigation data specifies the position, orientationand velocity (direction and speed of movement) of the moving camerawhich were determined using a dead reckoning technique. The inertialnavigation data is obtained using a processor, motion sensors (e.g.,accelerometers) and rotation sensors (e.g., gyroscopes). Beacon dataincludes, but is not limited to, unique beacon identifiers which can beused to obtain known locations of the beacons (e.g., iBeacons®). Thesensor data can include, but is not limited to, beam break sensor dataindicating detected motion of the person to which the camera isattached. iBeacons® and beam break sensors are well known in the art,and therefore will not be described herein. Any known or to be knowniBeacon® and/or beam break sensor can be used herein without limitation.

The person, object or vehicle is allowed to enter or remain in thefacility, zone or secured area when it is verified that the person,object or vehicle has authorization to enter the same, as shown by steps214-216. In this regard, a door lock may be commanded to unlock so thatthe person, object or vehicle can enter the facility (e.g., facility 102or 104 of FIG. 1) or secured area (e.g., secured area 110 of FIG. 1).The unique identifier of the portable camera can be used to generate thedoor lock command so as to facilitate keyless access control into thefacility or secured area. Additionally or alternatively, the portablecamera may be used to capture on image of a mirror reflection of theperson, object or vehicle to facilitate access control.

In optional step 218, security personnel are notified that the person,object or vehicle is authorized to enter or remain in the facility, zoneor secured area. Such notification can be electronically provided bywirelessly communicating a notification message to a communicationdevice in the possession of the security personnel. The communicationdevice can include, but is not limited to, a personal computer, a smartphone, a portable computer, a personal digital assistant, and/or a smartwatch. Additionally or alternatively, an auditory, visual and/or tactilealarm may be output from the communication device of the securitypersonnel and/or another computing device (e.g., a security system inproximity to the security personnel) in addition to and/or in responseto the notification message's reception. Subsequently, step 224 isperformed where method 200 ends or other processing is performed.

When it is not verified that the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter the facility, zone or secured area, steps 220-222are performed. These steps involve: taking measures to prevent theperson, object or vehicle from entering or remaining in the facility,zone or secured area; and optionally providing notification to securitypersonnel. In some scenarios, the measures comprise locking a door lock.The unique identifier of the portable camera may be used as anelectronic key for locking the door lock. The notification can beelectronically provided by wirelessly communicating a notificationmessage to a communication device in the possession of the securitypersonnel. The communication device can include, but is not limited to,a personal computer, a smart phone, a portable computer, a personaldigital assistant, and/or a smart watch. Additionally or alternatively,an auditory, visual and/or tactile alarm may be output from thecommunication device of the security personnel and/or another computingdevice (e.g., a security system in proximity to the security personnel)in addition to and/or in response to the notification message'sreception. Upon completing step 220 or 222, step 224 is performed wheremethod 200 ends or other processing is performed.

In view of the forgoing, the systems and methods described herein havemany novel features. For example, the systems: use any standard cameramounted on a person, vehicle or object to facilitate locating and/ortracking movement thereof; continually compare active images to a storedmap to determine where in the map the moving object is located; performexception handling on any image that does not fit into its storedmapping; use known visual or Infrared (“IR”) markers to determine animmediate location of the person, vehicle or object (note: this could beused to resync position or to use limited capability hardware whichmight be required by cheap systems); integrate location into acoordinate system using changes in image to indicate relative distance;store an image with the map for future reference or comparison; augmentposition or motion data with additional sensors; use a 3D datacollection to provide additional detailed mapping information; anddefine security zones within the mapped area to provide conditionalaccess or alarming.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown a hardware block diagramcomprising an exemplary computer system 300. The machine can include aset of instructions which are used to cause the computer system toperform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. In anetworked deployment, the machine can function as a server or a router.In one or more scenarios, the exemplary computer system 300 cancorrespond to the computing system 112 of FIG. 1 and/or the computingelements of camera 108 of FIG. 1. In the camera scenarios, system 300would include imaging components in addition to the computing elementsshown in FIG. 3. The imaging component can include, but are not limitedto, an image capturing device. Image capturing devices are well known inthe art, and therefore will not be described herein. Any known or to beknown image capturing device can be used herein without limitation.

The computer system 300 can operate independently as a standalonedevice. However, the present solution is not limited in this regard andin other scenarios the computer system can be operatively connected(networked) to other machines in a distributed environment to facilitatecertain operations described herein. Accordingly, while only a singlemachine is illustrated in FIG. 3, it should be understood that thepresent solution can be taken to involve any collection of machines thatindividually or jointly execute one or more sets of instructions asdescribed herein.

The computer system 300 is comprised of a processor 302 (e.g., a CentralProcessing Unit (“CPU”)), a main memory 304, a static memory 306, adrive unit 308 for mass data storage and comprised of machine readablemedia 320, input/output devices 310, a display unit 312 (e.g., a LiquidCrystal Display (“LCD”), a solid state display, or a Cathode Ray Tube(“CRT”)), and a network interface device 314. Communications among thesevarious components can be facilitated by means of a data bus 318. One ormore sets of instructions 324 can be stored completely or partially inone or more of the main memory 304, static memory 306, and drive unit308. The instructions can also reside within the processor 302 duringexecution thereof by the computer system. The input/output devices 310can include a keyboard, a keypad, a mouse, buttons, a multi-touchsurface (e.g., a touchscreen), a speaker, a microphone, an imagingcapturing device, and so on. The network interface device 314 can becomprised of hardware components and software or firmware to facilitatewired or wireless network data communications in accordance with anetwork communication protocol utilized by a data network (e.g., a LocalArea Network (“LAN”) and/or a Wide Area Network (“WAN”)).

The drive unit 308 can comprise a machine readable medium 320 on whichis stored one or more sets of instructions 324 (e.g., software) whichare used to facilitate one or more of the methodologies and functionsdescribed herein. The term “machine-readable medium” shall be understoodto include any tangible medium that is capable of storing instructionsor data structures which facilitate any one or more of the methodologiesof the present disclosure. Exemplary machine-readable media can includemagnetic media, solid-state memories, optical-media and so on. Moreparticularly, tangible media as described herein can include; magneticdisks; magneto-optical disks; CD-ROM disks and DVD-ROM disks,semiconductor memory devices, Electrically Erasable ProgrammableRead-Only Memory (“EEPROM”)) and flash memory devices. A tangible mediumas described herein is one that is non-transitory insofar as it does notinvolve a propagating signal.

Computer system 300 should be understood to be one possible example of acomputer system which can be used in connection with the variousimplementations. However, the present solution is not limited in thisregard and any other suitable computer system architecture can also beused without limitation. Dedicated hardware implementations including,but not limited to, application-specific integrated circuits,programmable logic arrays, and other hardware devices can likewise beconstructed to implement the methods described herein. Applications thatcan include the apparatus and systems of various implementations broadlyinclude a variety of electronic and computer systems. Someimplementations may implement functions in two or more specificinterconnected hardware modules or devices with related control and datasignals communicated between and through the modules, or as portions ofan application-specific integrated circuit. Thus, the exemplary systemis applicable to software, firmware, and hardware implementations.

Further, it should be understood that the present solution can take theform of a computer program product on a tangible computer-usable storagemedium (for example, a hard disk or a CD-ROM). The computer-usablestorage medium can have computer-usable program code embodied in themedium. The term computer program product, as used herein, refers to adevice comprised of all the features enabling the implementation of themethods described herein. Computer program, software application,computer software routine, and/or other variants of these terms, in thepresent context, mean any expression, in any language, code, ornotation, of a set of instructions intended to cause a system having aninformation processing capability to perform a particular functioneither directly or after either or both of the following: a) conversionto another language, code, or notation; or b) reproduction in adifferent material form.

All of the apparatus, methods, and algorithms disclosed and claimedherein can be made and executed without undue experimentation in lightof the present disclosure. While the present solution has been describedin terms of preferred embodiments, it will be apparent to those havingordinary skill in the art that variations may be applied to theapparatus, methods and sequence of steps of the method without departingfrom the concept, spirit and scope of the present solution. Morespecifically, it will be apparent that certain components may be addedto, combined with, or substituted for the components described hereinwhile the same or similar results would be achieved. All such similarsubstitutes and modifications apparent to those having ordinary skill inthe art are deemed to be within the spirit, scope and concept of thepresent solution as defined.

The features and functions disclosed above, as well as alternatives, maybe combined into many other different systems or applications. Variouspresently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives, modifications,variations or improvements may be made by those skilled in the art, eachof which is also intended to be encompassed by the disclosed solutions.

We claim:
 1. A method for location identification and tracking of aperson, object and/or vehicle, comprising: obtaining, by a computingsystem, a video of a surrounding environment which was captured by aportable camera coupled to the person, object or vehicle; comparing, bythe computing system, first images of the video to pre-stored secondimages to identify geographic locations where the first images werecaptured by the portable camera; analyzing, by the computing system, theidentified geographic locations to verify that the person, object orvehicle is (1) traveling along a correct path, (2) traveling towards afacility for which the person, object or vehicle has authorization toenter, (3) traveling towards a zone or secured area internal or externalto the facility for which the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter, or (4) located in or in proximity to a facility,zone or secured area for which the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter; and transmitting a notification from thecomputing system indicating the results of the analyzing.
 2. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising allowing the person, object orvehicle to enter the facility, zone or secured area when it is verifiedthat the person, object or vehicle has authorization to enter the same.3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising commanding a lockto unlock when it is verified that the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter the facility or secured area.
 4. The methodaccording to claim 3, wherein a unique identifier for the portablecamera is used an electronic key for unlocking the lock.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising notifying security personnelthat the person, object or vehicle is authorized to enter the facility,zone or secured area when it is verified that the person, object orvehicle has authorization to enter the same.
 6. The method according toclaim 1, further comprising providing notification to security personnelwhen it is not verified that the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter the facility, zone or secured area.
 7. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising taking measures to prevent theperson, object or vehicle from entering the facility, zone or securedarea when it is not verified that the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter the same.
 8. The method according to claim 7,wherein the measures comprise locking a lock.
 9. The method according toclaim 8, wherein a unique identifier of the portable camera is used asan electronic key for locking the lock.
 10. The method according toclaim 1, further comprising using a unique identifier of the portablecamera to determine an access or clearance level of the person, objector vehicle.
 11. The method according to claim 1, further comprisingusing a unique identifier of the portable camera to facilitateauthentication of the person, object or vehicle to which the portablecamera is coupled.
 12. The method according to claim 1, furthercomprising using a unique identifier of the portable camera tofacilitate keyless access control into or out of the facility or securedarea.
 13. The method according to claim 1, further comprising using atleast one of Global Positioning System (“GPS”) data, inertial navigationdata, beacon data and sensor data in conjunction with the video toidentify the geographic locations, to verify that the identifiedgeographic locations are correct, to detect a path of travel, or toverify that the path of travel is correct.
 14. The method according toclaim 1, further comprising using the portable camera to capture onimage of a mirror reflection of the person, object or vehicle tofacilitate access control.
 15. The method according to claim 1, whereinthe computing system comprises at least one of the portable camera and acomputing device remote from the portable camera.
 16. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising using the identified geographiclocations to generate a path of travel of the person, object or vehiclethrough the surrounding environment.
 17. A system, comprising: acomputing system having hardware and software configured to obtain avideo of a surrounding environment which was captured by a portablecamera coupled to a person, object or vehicle, compare first images ofthe video to pre-stored second images to identify geographic locationswhere the first images were captured by the portable camera, analyze theidentified geographic locations to verify that the person, object orvehicle is (1) traveling along a correct path, (2) traveling towards afacility for which the person, object or vehicle has authorization toenter, (3) traveling towards a zone or secured area internal or externalto the facility for which the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter or (4) located in or in proximity to a facility,zone or secured area for which the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter, and transmit a notification indicating theresults of the analyzing.
 18. The system according to claim 17, whereinthe person, object or vehicle is allowed to enter the facility, zone orsecured area when it is verified that the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter the same.
 19. The system according to claim 17,wherein the computing system further causes a lock to unlock when it isverified that the person, object or vehicle has authorization to enterthe facility or secured area.
 20. The system according to claim 19,wherein a unique identifier for the portable camera is used anelectronic key for unlocking the lock.
 21. The system according to claim17, wherein the computing system further provides a notification tosecurity personnel that the person, object or vehicle is authorized toenter the facility, zone or secured area when it is verified that theperson, object or vehicle has authorization to enter the same.
 22. Thesystem according to claim 17, wherein the computing system furtherprovides a notification to security personnel when it is not verifiedthat the person, object or vehicle has authorization to enter thefacility, zone or secured area.
 23. The system according to claim 17,wherein the computing system causes measures to be taken to prevent theperson, object or vehicle from entering the facility, zone or securedarea when it is not verified that the person, object or vehicle hasauthorization to enter the same.
 24. The system according to claim 23,wherein the measures comprise locking a lock.
 25. The system accordingto claim 24, wherein a unique identifier of the portable camera is usedan electronic key for locking the lock.
 26. The system according toclaim 17, wherein a unique identifier of the portable camera is used todetermine an access or clearance level of the person, object or vehicle.27. The system according to claim 17, wherein a unique identifier of theportable camera is used to facilitate authentication of the person,object or vehicle to which the portable camera is coupled.
 28. Thesystem according to claim 17, wherein a unique identifier of theportable camera is used to facilitate keyless access control into or outof the facility or secured area.
 29. The system according to claim 17,wherein at least one of Global Positioning System (“GPS”) data, inertialnavigation data, beacon data and sensor data is used in conjunction withthe video to identify the geographic locations, to verify that theidentified geographic locations are correct, to detect a path of travel,or to verify that the path of travel is correct.
 30. The systemaccording to claim 17, wherein the portable camera is used to capture onimage of a mirror reflection of the person, object or vehicle tofacilitate access control.
 31. The system according to claim 17, whereinthe computing system comprises at least one of the portable camera and acomputing device remote from the portable camera.
 32. The systemaccording to claim 17, wherein the identified geographic locations isused to generate a path of travel of the person, object or vehiclethrough the surrounding environment.
 33. The system according to claim17, wherein at least one of the video and notification is encryptedprior to be communicated between devices in the system.